3000 Fashion in 2008

Rap Star Andre Benjamin better known as Andre 3000 is considered one of the most sought-after lyricists these days. Almost every verse he drops as a cameo on other albums or remixes turns to gold, giving the rapper much respect, and reason to be considered amongst the discussion of Top 10 emcees in the game right now. Add to that the fact that Andre has been acting as well, with movies such as Four Brothers and Semi-Pro, and an upcoming role in "Battle in Seattle". But now Andre 3000 may become sought after for his clothes as well. He's been featured on the pages of many style/fashion magazines for his different looks. The next natural step? To release a fashion line with his own personal stamp of approval. The rapper recently unveiled his new line of clothing called "Benjamin Bixby" at a party at Barneys New York during Fashion Week. The line is said to be inspired by 1930's Ivy Athletics and according to the NY Times "looked like Ralph Lauren having a Steampunk moment." The name Benjamin Bixby derives from an episode of MTV’s “Punk’d” on which Mr. Benjamin was the victim of an elaborate joke: At the fabricated scene of a car accident, a Maybach salesman demanded his name, implying that Mr. Benjamin was responsible for the damages. Unaware of the setup, he blurted out “Bixby,” the last name of the actor who starred in the television series “The Incredible Hulk.” Later, to create a persona for his fashion line, Mr. Benjamin combined his surname with that of Bill Bixby. The character is a world traveler whose wardrobe includes things like a $995 cotton corduroy blazer, a $350 felted waistcoat and a $95 newsboy cap. At Barneys, those clothes now hang next to lines like Double RL and Engineered Garments, which have a similar bent of Depression Chic. Read more about the quirky, interesting and stylish Andre Benjamin at NYTimes.com

EW's Top 100 Albums Since 1983

Entertainment Weekly's recent issue published a comprehensive list of the Top 100 Albums released since 1983. Amongst the top 100 are plenty of hip hop offerings, including classics like Tribe Called Quest's "Low End Theory", De La Soul's "3 Feet High & Rising", Jay-Z's "Blueprint" and Eminem's "Marshall Mathers LP". Here's a look at the Top 25. 1. Purple Rain Prince and the Revolution (1984) 2. The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill Lauryn Hill (1998) 3. Achtung Baby U2 (1991) 4. The College Dropout Kanye West (2004) 5. Madonna Madonna (1983) 6. American Idiot Green Day (2004) 7. The Blueprint Jay-Z (2001) 8. Graceland Paul Simon (1986) 9. Back to Black Amy Winehouse (2007) 10. In Rainbows Radiohead (2007) 11. MTV Unplugged in New York Nirvana (1994) 12. Stankonia OutKast (2000) 13. You Are Free Cat Power (2003) 14. Disintegration The Cure (1989) 15. The Marshall Mathers LP Eminem (2000) 16. Rain Dogs Tom Waits (1985) 17. Odelay Beck (1996) 18. People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm A Tribe Called Quest (1990) 19. Dangerously in Love Beyoncé (2003) 20. Tidal Fiona Apple (1996) 21. The Emancipation of Mimi Mariah Carey (2005) 22. 3 Feet High and Rising De La Soul (1989) 23. The Soft Bulletin The Flaming Lips (1999) 24. Come On Over Shania Twain (1997) 25. Turn On the Bright Lights Interpol (2002) Get a full look at the EW Top 100 albums in the past 25 years here. Looking over the top 25, it's interesting to see the Tribe album chosen was not "Low End Theory", which many fans will debate is their best contribution to the genre, and helped ignite many music fans' love for rap. As for Outkast, "Stankonia" is a great album which includes the tracks "Ms Jackson" and "BOB", but I'd propose the "Atlienz" album as their best work. It includes a spaced-out theme and feel with lots of deep, introspective tracks. Kanye West ranks very high with his debut album, while Mariah Carey may surprise some with her comeback album "The Emancipation of Mimi". Notably missing are 2PAC, BIG and Public Enemy as well... Beyonce also ranks high on the list, but then again it's Entertainment Weekly, not Rolling Stone who compiled the list.

Will 2008 be the Year of 3000?

One of the most interesting guys in hip hop has got to be Andre 3000 from Outkast. You don't always hear his name in the news, but he's done quite a bit. He not only is 1/2 of the legendary rap duo of Outkast, but he's done cartoon, TV and movie acting as well. He's constantly listed on the top fashionable celeb reports when he attends events too. So what will the rapper be up to in the coming year? According to Vibe magazine's talk with the rapper: I've been reading a couple of things [scripts]. Can't talk about them though, you know how that is. The clothing company will be out fall/winter 2008 it will be in your stores. Maybe in the following year we'll start talking about our own retail store. The clothing company Dre is referring to is Benjamin Bixby. Other good news is 3000 has 2 new movie roles coming up, with Battle in Seattle and Semi-Pro (2008). He also has word of a solo album on the way. Dre's definitely one of the most underrated talents in rap today, so be on the lookout for him to breakout even more. Check out the very interesting Outkast website here.

Top 20 Hip Hop Ca$h Kings

(Above: Jay-Z's recent Rolling Stone cover. Interview here) Back in August Forbes put up a slideshow style list of the richest individuals in all of hip hop. The usual suspects are on the list, Jigga, 50, and Diddy. Here's a look at the Top 20 Cash Kings in Hip Hop: 1) Jay-Z (Recent Album: American Gangster) 2) 50 Cent (Recent Album: Curtis) 3) Diddy (Recent Album: Press Play) 4) Timbaland (Recent Album: Timbaland Presents Shock Value) 5) Dr. Dre (Upcoming Album: 2001) 6) Eminem (Recent Album: Curtain Call) 7) Snoop Dogg (Recent Album: Tha Blue Carpet Treatment) 8) Kanye West (Recent Album: Graduation) 9) Pharrell Williams (Recent Album: In My Mind) 10) Scott Storch (Recent Album: N/A) 11) Ludacris (Recent Album: Release Therapy) 12) T.I. (Recent Album: T.I. vs T.I.P.) 13) Outkast, Big Boi & Andre 3000 (Recent Album: Idlewild) 14) Lil' Jon (Recent Album: Crunk Juice) 15) Ice Cube (Recent Album: Laugh Now, Cry Later) 16) Jermaine Dupri (Recent Album: Yall Know What This Is) 17) Swizz Beats (Recent Album: One Man Band Man) 18) Chamillionaire (Recent Album: Ultimate Victory) 19) The Game (Recent Album: Doctor's Advocate) 20) Yung Joc (Recent Album: New Joc City) The above list also translated into an hour long show on E! in which they counted down and discussed each of the choices. Many of the names on the list, if not all, have deals with advertising, their own labels, products or companies, which provides a nice additional income. It's surprising to see Joc on the list rather than Jeezy or Lil Wayne. Storch is technically the only name on the list of someone who doesn't rap, but his beats are still heavily sought after by many artists in the hip hop world. Read more about the list of Hip Hop Cash Kings here.